Adele voted Britain's most popular act

Pink and the Foo Fighters came in at joint fourth with a projected 400,000 passionate fans, pushing Rihanna into sixth place with 370,000, who together splurged more than 11 million on her.

More than half (53 per cent) of Britons aged 16 to 54 said they had a "passionate" attachment to one musician, band, playwright or sports team, while 20 per cent said they dedicated more than half their available leisure spend to following their favourite act.

On average, they spent more than a thousand pounds (1,168) and travelled more than 1,000 miles a year following their idols, the research showed.

But while Londoners were found to be the biggest live event-goers, attending events or seeing performances on average 29 times a year, they were the least likely to declare themselves "uber-fans" of any particular act.

Instead, Glasgow and Liverpool boasted the most dedicated fans, with 30 per cent and 27 per cent respectively saying they spent the majority of their spare cash on their favourite band, singer or team.